Hyperdimension Neptunia: Crisis Thirteen
by TheTsundereLoli
Summary: It's been a year since Nepgear had taken the lives of all the other CPU's. The Deity of Sin and her words still lingered in Nepgear's mind as she continued onward and did her best to keep the world w a new threat has appeared. And it's up to Nepgear and her friends, new and old, to stop them. However- there is a deep secret involving them and the cursed sword. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**Ever wonder what happened to Gamindustri after the bad ending route in Hyperdimension Neptunia MK2/Rebirth 2? Well, this story is going to take play after the end of that ending!**

 **There are many hardships, and a lot of new characters! Let's get it on, huh?**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hyperdimension Neptunia. If I did, I'd be extremely happy.**

 **I DO own the OC's and the plot though!**

 _ **xXxXxXx**_

 **It's the year 20XX.**

 **One year has passed since the events leading Nepgear to killing all the CPU's in order to defeat the 'Deity of Sin.'**

 **Although she is alone, Nepgear has managed to pull off an amazing feat. Leading all of Gamindustri without much issue.**

 **With the continued help of Histoire and Kei, the only two Oracles willing to help Nepgear lead Gamindustri, they've continued to prosper.**

 **While the small nations that the other two Oracles control continue to fall behind and never catch up.**

 **In a constant state of failure, Chika, the ex-Oracle of Leanbox quit and was never seen again.**

 **But the ex-Oracle of Lowee, Mina, continues to battle against Nepgear's nation, even if it will always end in failure.**

 **Aside from these things, Gamindustri was peaceful, as promised by Nepgear. But, now a new threat enters the horizon.**

 **How will the heroine deal with this new unprecedented crisis?**

 **xXxXxXx**

Working frantically, Mina stapled all her documents and wrote out letters of approval on her desk. This week the papers just keep climbing. Apparently, the ruse in New Lowee was taking a step further than Mina anticipated which lead to a lot of bad things.

Not only were the shares at an all-time low, but a new group that calls themselves 'The Thirteen Guardians,' have shown up, wreaking havoc all over the place! Mina has never been so frustrated in her whole entire life!

They continued to cause problems that she had to deal with! And what were they asking for now? The ability to be able to, and quote: "Have a nice long chat," with her.

It was just outrageous! If they kept this up, New Lowee was doomed! And look at Nepgear, sitting in her peaceful tower living her peaceful life! How dare she! While these new disturbances annoyed Mina to no end, it was the fact that Nepgear could cope with the pressure of having _killed every single CPU._

She just could not comprehend why Nepgear could still move forward without even so much as showing remorse for her fallen sisters!

And Mina? Oh how much she's changed since a year ago. She fought constantly with Nepgear about how much land they own, and every damn time Nepgear takes just a small bit out of her land!

Who the hell would be able to keep calm after something like that?! And now these new guys showing up are making it worse! Her load was bad enough when she was just a simple oracle. And sure she managed a whole nation by herself for three years, barely being able to stand up against ASIC.

But that didn't mean anything!

A knock on the door caught Mina's attention, and she turned her head in the direction of the door. "Enter!" she called, unsure who exactly wanted to see her at this time. To her surprise, it was actually Chika!

Chika was the ex-oracle of Leanbox, and also New Leanbox's leader. After a time, she vanished from everyone's view and New Leanbox was destroyed. How long has it been since she heard from Chika? Five months now?

"Chika-"

"Spare the long-time no see greetings." Chika quickly said, walking into Mina's office slowly and looking around. "I'm not here on a 'good times' visiting."

Mina frowned slightly, but otherwise kept a small smile. "Then why are you here, Chika? Surely you must know what is happening in my own city."

She nodded, looking out the viewing window that allowed Mina too see all of New Lowee. It really looked like a beautiful nation. Too bad it was going to fall at some point...

"I am here because I require your aid."

Mina tilted her head, a look of confusion apparent on her face. "However do you mean?"

Chika looked down slightly, and turned towards Mina. "You know of the Thirteen Guardians, correct?" at Mina's nod, she continued. "Well, apparently their main goal is to rid the world of Nepgear."

At this, Mina practically flew out of her seat and got up right in front of Chika. "What! Really?! Why?"

Chika looked away slightly. "They didn't give a reason why. They just said that Nepgear was their enemy, and that they plan on overthrowing her."

Mina placed a hand to her mouth, suppressing a gasp, before lowering her hand slowly. "Why tell me this? Surely there is some reason you know of all...this..." then the realization struck Mina, a tad bit too late though.

Chika smiled. "Yes. They asked that you and I join them in their attempt at accomplishing their goal."

Mina's eyes widened for a moment, before a light frown appeared on her face. "Is this where you disappeared off to?" While Mina hasn't really changed in appearance at all, Chika on the other hand changed quite a bit.

Still wearing the same clothes, some new editions like an emblem and what appeared to be a weapon sheath on her back. Did that mean...?

She smiled. "Yes. I was offered to join them and be trained. It was I that recommended you, Mina. We both share our dislike for Nepgear, not to mention we share that dislike with every Guardian member."

Mina's frown vanished, and a devious smile appeared on her face. "When do we begin?"

"Right now."

 **xXxXxXx**

"...Due to certain events, I do not entirely agree with you heading off and visiting the new nations, Nepgear." Kei, the vice oracle of Gamindustri said to Nepgear. At the moment, Nepgear had a huge plan to try and make peace with New Lowee and New Leanbox.

Why the thought didn't occur to her half a year ago, she wasn't sure. With the constant state of attacks from both nations, which Nepgear expertly handled and dealt with properly, you would think she would have thought of this idea that long ago.

"But why, Kei? What's happening over in New Lowee?" she asked.

"You've heard the reports of riots in NL, along with Chika's disappearance. Collecting the correct information, thanks to IF's hard work, we've managed to come to the conclusion that New Leanbox is under heavy influence of the Thirteen Guardians." Kei summed up the state of things with no pause.

And before Nepgear had a chance to say anything, she continued. "Also, we believe that the riots in Lowee point to the crashing down of Leanbox. This proves that the Guardians are in cahoots with Leanbox, and are currently in the planning stage of having a truce with Lowee."

No matter how many times Kei gives all the details, Nepgear will always have issues understanding completely what is happening. Doesn't that mean that Chika's disappearance may have something to do with the Guardians?

And if so, wouldn't that mean...?

"Doesn't that mean that, in my going to Lowee, I could most likely be seized and killed on the spot?" Nepgear came to the conclusion, and Kei nodded.

"Yes. That is why I disagree with sending you to Lowee. Any hope of making peace with Mina has vanished. And other sources tell me that it is possible that Chika has already made contact with Mina in hopes of joining forces to take you and the Nation of Gamindustri down."

Now she understood. Made sense...kind of.

Kei stood up straight from the chair she was sitting in, and rolling on her heel, she turned around to face the door out of Nepgear's office. "If that is all, IF and Compa had information for me pertaining to Lowee and Leanbox."

Nepgear just nodded, and with that Kei left the room. Shutting the door quietly behind her and making her way towards her meeting spot.

"Was this what she meant?" Nepgear quietly said to no one in particular, before taking a seat at her desk. With a sigh and leaning into her arm, she closed her eyes. "Will Gamindustri really fall because of my actions a year ago?"

With that question plaguing her mind, she fell asleep.

 **xXxXxXx**

In the deepest part of the Library, Histoire huddled over a small book, deeply absorbing all its contents within a matter of seconds. This was the thirteenth book on Gamindustri History that Histoire committed herself to memorizing.

Ever since Chika's act of disappearance and Mina's sudden stop of attacks, she escaped to the Library, which held the largest expanse of books, in order to find anything similar to what is happening now.

And with the thirteenth book, still nothing. She tossed it haphazardly onto the desk she was floating near before sighing and closing her eyes. "Still nothing..." she mumbled between breaths.

It was that moment that Cave decided to enter, hefting a large pile of books effortlessly. "The books from the V section." she said simply, in which she set them down and Histoire waved her away. Not saying another word, Cave left Histoire to continue onward.

"Is this even producing fruit? Not one hint of this ever happening in history..." she said, sighing yet again before picking up another book and began reading. This was basically all she's been doing lately. She left the information affairs to Kei.

And from what they've gathered so far, this could mark something unimaginable. The complete destruction of Gamindustri. And who is going to be standing on top? Chika and Mina, along with 11 other fools.

Because didn't the same thing happen with Leanbox leading to Chika vanishing? A group of 11 people, who called themselves the 'Thirteen' Guardians, rioted in Leanbox, and then Chika up and vanished, along with the riots. Then Leanbox basically fell into chaos.

Now Lowee was suffering riots from the 'Thirteen' Guardians. And why call themselves the 'Thirteen Guardians' if they only had 11, and they rioted both Leanbox and Lowee? The outcome is right there; Mina and Chika were on their list for the group.

And now? Who knows what could happen. But that was exactly the reason Histoire chose this opportunity to study the history. Both in her book of 'Everything,' and in their library. And so far? No results.

This could spell doom for all of Gamindustri, and the ex-oracles hardly cared at all. Only their nation was alert to the doom that may befall this whole world. And it started with one idea in mind; destroy Nepgear.

"I must find something that relates to this!" she said, and starting reading the book in full. Needless to say, the Nation of Gamindustri was very busy during this time. And what could happen in the next few days?

Perhaps a war.

Perhaps a demand.

Perhaps their death.

 **xXxXxXx**

"...She's late." IF said, tapping her foot impatiently. She and Compa arrived at the meeting spot almost an hour ago. Kei was never ever late to any meeting she had. She was just that stingy.

"Ah, just give her some time. She had a meeting with Ge-Ge just an hour ago. Who knows what she could have wanted." Compa said, still wearing a smile on her face. The two just arrived back from New Lowee, and with this new piece of news, they were sure-

"I'm sorry for being late; I had duties to attend to." Kei said, interrupting their thoughts and taking a seat across from the two. IF just sighed. "About time...We were beginning to think you'd never make it."

Kei just smiled slightly. "I always make time for my meetings. Anyway, what information do you bring this time?"

IF and Compa shared a look, before IF spoke. "We've found out that the riots in Lowee have died down completely." then Compa took over. "So we came to the conclusion that Lowee has entered the same state Leanbox did when its oracle vanished."

Kei placed a hand to her chin, before nodding. "Just like Histoire's hunch..." she mumbled, before moving her hand and speaking out loud. "So our suspicions were true after all. How long do we have before they will make their move?"

IF spoke next. "I perceive we have about a month before they unleash whatever plan they have set."

Kei sighed, leaning back in her chair. That spelled trouble with a capital T. A month from now is when the carnival took place. A perfect time to sneak into Gamindustri and destroy it from the inside.

"...Have you told any of the others?" when they both shook their heads, Kei stood up from her seat and placed both hands on the table.

"Then I hereby place a level C alert. Gather everyone to the Basilicom as soon as possible." without any more words exchanged, Kei walked away, leaving IF and Compa to tell everyone to meet at the Basilicom.

"I'll head for the HQ." IF said, standing up and looking towards the direction of the Basilicom. "You can head for the hotel. I'm sure Falcom and 5pb. are there." Compa nodded, standing up from her chair as well. "Alright! See you at the Basilicom." and with that, the two parted ways.

 **xXxXxXx**

"Histoire, there has been a meeting set for ten minutes from now. Perhaps you should take a break and head up there." Cave said, finally getting Histoire's attention. Histoire actually looked at Cave with a look of fear. "Then I guess it's time."

Cave nodded, and the two headed for the main meeting room. It was at least a 5 minute walk to get to the main building, and another 5 to reach the meeting hall. And Histoire was dreading this meeting with her very being.

This was going to be war. And if they launch their attack a month from now, they couldn't do a thing.

"May the goddess help us..." she mumbled, following Cave after setting her book down.

 **xXxXxXx**

"Now I hope you all understand exactly why I have called this meeting." Kei started off, giving note to every single person in the hall. The only two people they were missing are Broccoli and CC2.

She gave one last look around the table, earning nods from everyone. Then she continued. "It is as Histoire feared. Due to the information we've just received from IF and Compa," she gave a thanking nod in their direction. "We've come to the conclusion that the 'Guardians' and the two ex-oracles are now coming together to try and destroy Gamindustri."

As Kei was about to continue, Red raised her hand. Without even being called upon, she started talking. "Wouldn't that mean we're in trouble?"

She nodded. "Yes. Major trouble. As you all already know, the 'Guardians,' as they call themselves, are not joking around. They've managed to subdue two nations in a matter of days. First Leanbox and now Lowee." she turned her head in IF's direction.

"According to our visit a short while ago, the attacks in Lowee stopped quite suddenly. It may just be a trick, but at this moment it isn't smart to just lie back because it may or may not be a trick."

And then Nepgear, who was thinking to herself this whole time, spoke after. "It could be so, that with their aid, the 'Guardians' might accomplish what they have for their goal."

"Yes, quite so. We're traversing dangerous grounds. We have but one month to think of a countermeasure for this...impending issue at hand." Histoire said.

Then the room was silent. Everyone deep in thought. Could the 8 of them really have a chance against such a force?

But the meeting wasn't over; there were still some things that needed to be addressed-

And then the door suddenly slammed open, a boy with short black hair and...Just an overall black appearance, entered. He was completely out of breath.

"What is the meaning of this, sir Tri?"

Tri, the name of the boy, finally recovered his breath. The meeting members only consisted of girls, which spelled a bit of chaos in the young boys mind. "Attack...western...side...help!" he barely got out.

"Whoa, whoa, slow down. Take deep breaths and then tell us." IF, ever so concerning, spoke up. By this point the meeting was mute, as they were waiting on whatever Tri had to say.

He took a deep breath, before letting it out slowly. "The western edge of Gamindustri was attacked by somebody who called himself 'Number four!' Hector passed the information the moment it showed up!

Histoire's eyes widened for a moment, before she relaxed slightly. "Okay, I get the situation." she said, gaining everyone's attention. Various expressions were showing in the room at that moment, and Histoire could obviously tell it wasn't good.

"It appears the "Guardians" are already beginning their attack. I'd like to send Nepgear there to handle the situation."

Before Nepgear accepted the idea, surprising it was Cave that didn't agree. "What do you mean? Just Nepgear? Surely you must know that-"

But Histoire cut her off. "Yes, I know completely that Nepgear's special training isn't complete. But I fear that just one of these villains is much too powerful for you normal humans to handle. If this person claimed to be the fourth, we can only assume that he will be quite powerful."

Kei nodded. "Yes, I see the point. Nepgear, would you like to travel to the Western side and give them your assistance?"

Nepgear nodded, placing a hand to her chest. "Of course! I'll get going right away." she said. All the board members nodded their heads, and without a second hesitation, Nepgear rushed out of the room.

"...I wonder why they've already started." Compa voiced her thoughts, and both oracles shook their head.

"We can only wonder."

 **xXxXxXx**

Nepgear rushed franticly down the stairs of the Basilicom. It was only two floors down that they had their flight lift off platform. But even for two floors, it was still a long way. The main central Basilicom was actually four times the size of Planeptune's.

And the moment Nepgear placed her feet on the level that held the flight platform, or the DFP, a voice came from up top of the stairs. "Wait!" it was the boy that had burst into the meeting to give the report.

Nepgear, being the ever so sweet person she was, stopped suddenly in order to give him time to catch up. "What do you need, Tri?" she asked. After a few seconds, he finally caught up to her, leaning over and panting.

 _These girls have too much energy..._ he thought, catching his breath. "I'd like to accompany you to ward off the enemy." he finally said, straightening himself up. It was true; Tri did hold a strange power that was still unknown to them. But was he ready...?

Before Nepgear could say something, he talked again. "I know I may not seem like it, but I can fight. I want to help in some way." _For once..._

It was a few moments later when Nepgear finally gave in. "Fine. We'll get to the DFP and I'll activate HDD and fly us there." the smile that appeared on his face was enough for Nepgear to smile herself.

With that, the two ran for the platform and Nepgear quickly activated HDD. Even after a whole year, her HDD form still hasn't changed. Except her personality.

"Climb on!" she said, floating slightly in the air. With one solid leap, Tri was in the air and he landed on her back. Without another moment wasted, they were completely airborne and flying fast towards the western edge.

Planeptune's ruins-

After an hour of flying, Tri finally decided to start a conversation. "So, how long until we get there."

"It's another two hours to get to the ruins. And who knows where this guy is." a straight answer. She has changed quite a bit since she took every CPU's life. With that, he stopped talking.

After all, today was the first day he even really got to see the CPU in person. But he does know Kei personally.

And she was correct. There wasn't much talk on the way there, but after two hours they arrived at the Ruins of Planeptune. It wasn't really ruins as much as it was just void of contact and populace. The 'Boonies' is basically what it's called.

They flew for another 10 minutes, before landing on a platform connected to Planeptune's Basilicom.

With that, Tri jumped off of Nepgear's back, performing a perfectly executed front flip.

"I'd say splitting up might be best. But considering how big this city is, I doubt that'd work in our favour." Nepgear said, deactivated HDD and placing her feet on the ground. Tri just nodded as he looked over the edge of the platform. You could see the entire city from here.

"Right, then we might as well-" he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence, before they heard laughter a little ways behind them. Reacting quickly, Tri and Nepgear took out their respective weapons, and pointed them in the direction it came from.

"Ah, I mean no harm. At least not to the boy there." A figure appeared out of the shadows. It was a big man with a large scythe looking weapon in his hand, but resting on his shoulder. "I really only have business with that girl there." he said, pointing his scythe at Nepgear. The two tensed up instantly.

"And the point is?" Tri asked, slowly relaxing his battle stance. Nepgear herself stayed alert and aware of the mysterious man's position on the platform.

He laughed. A laugh capable of quelling the ancient power of the Deity of Sin. "My point-" he started, and before the two even had a chance to think about what he might do next, he was suddenly in front of Nepgear. Nepgear of course noticed this, but wasn't quick enough on the draw. She was launched off of the platform, barely blocking the man's attack, and then she fell straight down.

"Is that I kill her." he said, turning swiftly after watching to see if she hit the ground. "I am the fourth Guardian, Feng. It is my pleasure to meet you." he said, bowing but keeping his scythe at the ready.

Tri could barely believe his eyes. Did Nepgear just get overpowered in an instant? This was bad. Extremely bad! He back stepped a few feet, before holding his Katana in a vertical direction.

"Ah, still resisting eh? Well..." he said, and before Tri could even blink, he was behind him with his scythe's tip at his throat. "You better surrender. You won't live any longer if you resist any further. I hate to have to kill people that aren't important to our goal."

Tri grunted. This was bad. He had absolutely no chance in hell fighting somebody who has enough power to fling a person as powerful as Nepgear off of a tower with little to no effort. With an angered face, Tri dropped his Katana and kicked it off of the platform.

 _"Bye, sword."_ he thought, and felt Feng's scythe pull away from his throat. He rubbed his throat, turning around and facing Feng.

"Smart choice lad." he said, before moving to look over the edge again. "Well, that was easy. I thought the grand CPU of the whole world was able to destroy worlds. Too bad for that rumour."

Tri closed his eyes. What could he do now? The moment he'd touch his communicator, the brute would instantly be upon him. So much for being ready for anything...

Feng sighed, turning his back away from the edge to look at Tri. "How about you join our group, laddie? I promise you, you will be treated equally!" his loud voice was getting on Tri's nerves. And the fact that this beast in front of him reminded him about what happened in his past…That didn't help his nerves at all.

Feng raised his eyebrows, before sighing. "No eh? Well, I guess that's fine. We have everyone we ever needed anyway." he said, walking slightly towards Tri. "I guess I'm finished here. That CPU proved to be a wuss-"

And Tri had no clue what happened to Feng's voice, but when he opened his eyes he saw Nepgear, now transformed, locking blades with Feng. When did she even show up?!

"Gah! Didn't expect that!" Feng shouted, and Nepgear delivered a powerful underhanded swing, which Feng indeed blocked, but it was so powerful that he was launched in the air. Without so much as speaking, Nepgear flew up at him so fast that Tri couldn't even comprehend, but he did see Feng now flying at an extreme speed towards the city.

And when he crashed into the ground? Well, a large crater appeared. It was a good thing Nepgear aimed that smash down towards a place that didn't hold any residents. And with that, Nepgear slowly fell towards the platform, before stopping a few inches above it.

"The fool." she said suddenly, looking in Tri's direction before smiling slightly. "I'm sorry about that. Caught me off guard."

All Tri could do was tilt his head in confusion. What the heck just happened? First she took a dive off of a...two thousand feet tower and hit the ground. Now here she is, right in front of him with a smile on her face.

"Uhhh..." truly at a loss for words.

She put a hand to her mouth to not allow the giggle escape. "I guess it's finished. Let's be on our way back." she said, glad that the training with Falcom and Tekken paid off. Tri nodded his head slowly, and before he got on her back, they heard another laugh.

It seemed these people just love laughing.

"Very good!" the voice said, and they turned around with their eyes wide. Here he was, Feng, standing not more than 5 feet away from them, with not a single scratch visible.

"No way!" Nepgear said, taking a heroic step forward in his direction.

"I was a bit surprised there. Our leader didn't say you were capable of that. Guess you shouldn't trust everything the leader says, huh?" he smirked, and held his scythe in the air. "Perhaps I should go all out!" he yelled.

A light appeared around his scythe, and he started spinning the handle of it at extreme speeds. Then he suddenly grabbed the other end of it, and it twisted to the point in which it snapped apart.

But what was inside the handle startled both of them; a chain. With a series of movements, he held the bladed end of the scythe with his left hand and the other side with his right. "Now things are going to get interesting."

 **xXxXxXx**

[Just after Nepgear and Tri left Gamindustri City.]

"...And there they go." Kei said, walking with Histoire. There were windows everywhere, and it just so happened that they were looking out the one that showed the DFP. DFP meant 'Designated Flight Platform.' Gamindustri City's Basilicom had 6 in different places around the tower.

Through the months, they were able to put together a machine that could fly, thanks to Nepgear's love of robots and the like. They've really gone far ever since the events of last year.

Within months, Nepgear already held almost 95% of the entire world. And she did an amazing job managing every single thing about it. Born with the talent, or so Kei supposed.

"Yes. I hope that nothing bad befalls them on their travels. Even when they arrive, I hope that they can deal with the situation without any issue." Histoire was deeply worried about this. Any of the Guardians from the 7th down has the potential to wipe the floor with Nepgear, even in HDD mode.

Kei just nodded. They may need to send another person down there...she had a bad feeling about this.

And that was when Marc, another addition to the team, came running down the hallway and stopping right next to Kei and Histoire. Her style of clothing was anything but bad looking. She wore close to the same style of clothing that IF wore, aside from colour differences and a few additions such as an emblem and a turtle neck.

"We have a major problem!" she said, leaning over and panting. They both turned to look in her direction, before Kei stepped forward and offered a comforting hand on the shoulder. "What's the problem, Marc?"

She seemed to regain her breath faster than Tri did, which was saying something, before she said it all in one breath. "The enemy that Nepgear and Tri are fighting was the one who was said to be a match for all 8 CPU's!"

She was of course referring to The four CPU's and CPU candidates.

Kei blinked for about 5 seconds, before Histoire knocked her back to her senses. "What do you mean?"

Marc's expression was one that Kei hoped she'd never see on anyone's faces ever again. It was one of terror and horrified. "Nepgear is most likely to die!"

That got the gears spinning, and Histoire took control of the conversation. "This is a level six issue. We're sending IF and Falcom down there right this instant!"

And as Histoire and Marc quickly left that hallway, Kei stood in silence.

"Feng..."

 **xXx**

*Crash* "Gahhh!" Nepgear screamed as Feng's attack seemed to effortlessly throw Nepgear right into the tower wall, with enough force that sent her through that side and out the other end. That in itself was at least two-hundred feet of distance.

As Nepgear's figure flew, Tri turned his attention back to Feng, who was now facing his direction.

"Gahahahaha! What a show! I hope you'll be more interesting. You haven't even attacked me once!" he said, taking slow steps towards Tri while flailing his scythe in the air.

"Tch." Tri took a step back every time Feng took a step forward. _What can I do in this situation? Even Nepgear was thrown silly through that building. And she was in HDD mode!"_

But the pursuit would come to an end. For Tri took another step backwards and he barely caught himself when his foot when over the edge. Here he was, cornered by the enemy with no way of winning.

 _This is the end, huh? And I didn't even manage to rescue my friend…_

He reached behind his back, drawing out the second sword he had sheathed on his back. This one was pure black with red engraving on it. His best sword in the world. But he knew in his heart that even this sword wasn't going to help him in this fight.

 _I might as well make one last stand...She'd probably hate me if I didn't._

With gritted teeth, he held his sword in a cross block, ready for any attack that Feng could muster.

"Pfft. Worthless."

That was the only word Tri heard before his sword was instantly knocked out of his hand. In that split shock, Feng closed in and kneed him in the gut. With a mixture of noises, Tri coughed out blood, before Feng kicked outward. It sent him flying away from the tower at an incredible speed.

He knew that he wouldn't survive the crash. Nepgear might have, seeing how she was just that strong. But him? He'd just splatter on the ground...nothing left...He was just a dead weight here…Back then he couldn't help anyone, why would it change now?

Feng watched his flying body, knowing the kid would die on impact. He was just a normal human after all, and he lacked training and strength. With a sigh, he locked his scythe back in place, and placed it on his back.

"That was boring. Did we really need to try so hard to deal with these kids?" he said, closing his eyes. He went easy on them and yet...they were so weak? What was the point in fighting them if all they were just weaklings?

He stood next to the edge, feeling the wind on his face. "You should have stayed home." he said, twisting his neck around and popping it in multiple areas.

"That CPU holds a lot of potential. Though I wished she mastered her power. Maybe then we could have had an interesting fight."

A flash of light to his left caught his attention, and in one swift movement, he had his scythe off his back and blocking a dangerously powerful blow from Nepgear, who seemed to have recovered quicker than Feng anticipated.

The worst part of it was that even though he put his all into blocking the blow, she still managed to push he back a few feet.

"You...YOU!" Nepgear shouted, and Feng didn't have time to react before Nepgear was instantly behind him.

 _So fast!-_

He tried to twist around and block, but before he could Nepgear slashed vertically and cut through his skin. With a grunt of pain, he was launched forward a bit, before twisting fully and blocking Nepgear's next attack.

A clash of light, and they locked weapons once again.

"So you've managed to cut me. Where did this strength come from?"

Nepgear didn't say anything, before she did something that shocked him completely. She lifted him up by where they were locked, and with a solid kick, she connected with his gut, launching him into the air and off of the platform.

With heavy breathing, Nepgear slowly lowered to the platform, and her HDD deactivated. She crumbled onto her hands and knees.

"Urk...I barely handled that..." she said, struggling to rise to her feet. Her eyes glanced to her right, the direction that Feng sent Tri flying, and she caught his figure smashing into the ground.

And Tri was dead, just like that.

She closed her eyes and looked away, not wanting to know the outcome of that crash.

"I shouldn't have brought him!" she shouted, slamming her fist onto the metal ground, which actually dented it plenty.

Then her communicator began to flash, and with tears in her eyes she clicked it on.

 _ **Nepgear, what's the situation?**_

It was Histoire's voice, and Nepgear stumbled with her words in response.

"*Sniff*, I-I couldn-coulndlt save him! Tri he's...he's...gone..." she said, tears flowing from her voice. Histoire's eyes widened on the small hologram screen, before she clutched her fists. _**"No way..."**_

"Histoire...I...I'm..."

 _ **"It was not your fault Nepgear. He knew the outcome of the choice he made when he went with you."**_

*Sniff* "Ye-yeah. You're right." she said, slowly getting the rest of the way on her feet, before standing up straight. "I'll...be heading back. I finished the guy off."

That was when Histoire tilted her head with a look of confusion.

 _ **"Nepgear. Do not drop your guard. That member is rumoured to have the strength of all 8 CPU's."**_

Nepgear blinked for a moment. "W-Wait, what?"

Before Histoire had a chance to answer, Nepgear had to react quickly to dodge the overhead strike that was intended to cleave her from head to toe. She spun around in the air in order to spot the now pissed off Feng, his the attack from his scythe was strong enough to pierce into the hard metal ground, leaving a large hole.

This time, he didn't look so flawless. He was all banged up with cuts and bruises, a small trickle of blood ran down from his forehead.

"Okay, I'm done messing around." he said, Nepgear shut off her comms and drew her Beam Sword, but she was too slow. The speed she had in her HDD wasn't there anymore, and she found herself flung into the air, and back down to the platform. She slammed onto it, creating a small dent about 2 feet down.

But the amount of blood she coughed out of her mouth said it all. She was finished. The scythe blade had cut open a gash long enough to make sure her doom.

Here she was again...even after a year of getting stronger, she still had to watch as her enemy stood in front of her in victory.

Here she was again, about to lose. And now? Gamindustri would most likely fall into chaos.

"Payback time." he said, standing at the edge of the small metal crater, holding his scythe in the air and preparing to deliver the finishing blow.

"That's right, payback time!" this new voice deeply confused Nepgear, before the face of IF, her closest friend, appeared in view. Her strength had increased drastically since a year ago, and it proved true when even though Feng blocked her attack, he was still pushed back a few inches by the force.

"Another one wishes to meet her doom!" Feng said, rolling his scythe through IF's Qatar's, and slashing right down on her face. But IF, being slightly more mobile than Nepgear, managed to twist her blocking arm and redirect his scythe away from her harmlessly, and she then dealt a strong air kick that pushed both him and her back away a few feet.

Now IF stood near Nepgear, and Feng quite a ways away.

"Don't die on me now, Nepgear." she said, jumping to the other side of the hole and entering a guard stance as a protective measure against Feng.

"Tch. So this is the strength of IF." he mumbled, swinging his scythe overhead and holding it with both hands.

"So, what now?" he asked, a smug look on his face. IF stood, not shaking in any way, completely different from Tri. "What now? I kick your ass for hurting Nepgear, and killing Tri! That's what!" she shouted, waiting for Feng to make the first move.

A breeze flew through the air as IF and Feng stared each other down. Nepgear still didn't move, seeing as she was defeated as she was. IF took one quick look at Nepgear, instantly figuring out the situation, and looking back at Feng.

This was bad. She already lost a large amount of blood. Anymore and she'd be likely to just pass out. This would be bad, extremely bad. Where were Marc and Falcom? This was already dire.

IF was confident enough to be able to handle this monster by herself at full power. But she still knew that she'd lose without assistance. Maybe using the cannon bolt on the 'Falcon Plane' to reach here faster was a bad idea.

But at least she saved Nepgear because of that. Thank the lord that Nepgear had the knowledge of machines. If not, the amount of time it took to make the 'Falcon Plane' would have doubled- no, tripled.

The wind was all anyone could hear at the moment. The concentration skills of both IF and Feng were unimaginable. And neither wanted to make the first move. This worked to IF's advantage.

With a sigh, Feng relaxed his grip on his scythe. When he noticed that IF quirked her eyebrow, he explained. "I do not feel the need to even try to fight you. I can tell that the force that you put into that initial strike was caused by some other means. Otherwise, you would have been able to continue the assault."

IF blinked. This was even worse than it was a few minutes ago.

"Thus, I conclude that you aren't really powerful, if at all."

That grinded IF's gears a bit too much, and with a burst of speed she was practically floating in the air around half and inch, closing in on Feng a bit too fast for him to comprehend. In fact, he wasn't expecting much from her at all, but this proved him wrong.

In just one second, she was already swinging her Qatar's in fury, Feng either blocking or parrying every single one. Her mad dash actually forced him to the edge faster than Nepgear or Tri, which of course surprised him.

And with a mid-air uppercut kick, her heel connected with his chin, and he was launched slightly in the air. But she wasn't done. In his small bit of shock, she slashed him a few times before delivering a perfect mid-air roundhouse kick to his gut, which sent him flying.

And the most surprising part of her attacks? She did them all in mid-air without touching the ground. With Feng's flying figure, IF landed on the ground and took a deep breath before sighing.

"Hmph. That's what you get for messing with me." she said, turning around slightly before stopping and looking at his small body as it smashed into the ground for what seemed like the hundredth time today.

"But I'm not done with you yet." she said, opening her comm and linking it to the 'Falcon'

"Falcom, Marc, when you arrive I want you to pick Nepgear up. Tri didn't make it." she said, looking over at Nepgear.

 _ **"Roger..."**_

The sadness in Marc's tone said everything. Feng was going to pay for that. IF looked other in the direction she sent Feng, and with a shrug, she leaped off of the tower.

 **xXxXxXx**

 **[IF versus Feng!]**

 **First chapter is done and left with a big ass cliff-hanger! And damn, IF just butchered Feng right in the face with that one.**

 **If I were to actually compare the two, IF lacks the major strength that Feng has, but makes up for it with her amazing agile fighting style. Not to mention her Mobility is on par with that of Nepgear and Neptune put together.**

 **That basically means she can handle the normal versions of Neptune and Nepgear at the same time and win.**

 **She also can fight in mid-air without the flight ability of the CPU's. IF has a special skill that she developed that allows her to stay in the air for longer periods of time.**

 **IF did just that, and completely shocked Feng out of his socks.**

 **As for Tri. there is a lot about him you don't understand yet. But of course, that is one major spoiler and I hate those. XD!**

 **Next time: IF versus Feng! This is IF's true potential.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Whoo, I got more views throughout the week then I thought I was gonna get! And a review too- sweet.  
More than I thought I was gonna see, which is great! Got me motivated to start editing the second chapter and post it!**

No, I'm not gonna get into posting a chapter a week. These two were special cases because I had them pre-written beforehand.  
Disclaimer: I do not own the HDN series. All I own are any OC's that appear, and the plot.

 **[IF Versus Feng! -**

 **IF's true Potential.]**

IF bent her knees the moment she came into contact with the roof of a building. But of course the force of her fall just made her crash right through and down all the way to the first floor. And she timed it perfectly with a Flight Leap. A special technique that she herself created in order to survive falls from even one million feet high.

It involved the use of magic, which she had asked Nepgear about. After a few months, she was able to create her own magical ability- Flight Leap as she called it.

It also helped her in Aerial Combat. This was why she managed to perform a perfect roundhouse kick from a completely different angel she was at when she kicked him in the chin.

The moment her feet hit the ground after her Flight Leap, she burst off running in the known direction of where Feng crashed. Out of everyone in Gamindustri, she was the fastest and smartest. Or so she liked to think. It wasn't far from the truth though. She had been training for months after months to get to this stage. Sometimes she liked to think she was as strong if not stronger than Nepgear.

Of course, that only came to be after her long tedious training sessions throughout the year.

However, she knew for a fact that she was the most sane. But at the moment, even she wasn't sure about that anymore. She did jump off an extremely tall tower, and remained intact. Unlike-

Gah! Don't think about it. Just don't think about it.

But she was thinking about it. Did he have any last thoughts before he made his impact? These were some horrible thoughts. And with a single leap, IF cleared a forty foot tall building and landed on the other side.

Her thoughts resumed.

 _Just what kind of person is he, anyway?_ IF just hoped she could hold her ground. She knew she was entering a losing fight but...she had to at least scar the enemy so that they don't act so rash again.

Leaping over a few more buildings, she'd find herself not too far away from where she knew he crashed. And with amazing acrobatic abilities, she leaped over another building, twisted herself in the air, and landed on the ground facing the exact direction of where the hole was.

She narrowed her eyes, looking deep into the hole, she then noticed a figure slowly make his way out of it. Feng appeared to be less injured than he was when Nepgear launched him off of the tower. But only because IF wasn't going all out.

But that was about to change.

He rolled his shoulders, noticing IF standing there a small distance away. "I will admit, you had me there for a moment. Surprising to say the least." he said, reaching out and grabbing his scythe, which seemed to have no damage at all. Even the blade was still gleaming with shine.

IF backstepped, whipping out her Qatar's and entering a defensive stance. Feng however, just pointed the large Scythe at her.

"I will get my own payback."

"Bite me!" she countered, and with speed that seemed much too slow to IF, Feng was off the ground and going towards her. He swung his scythe in a wide arch, and with talent that'd blow even the leader away, IF perfectly performed a frontal dive right over the shimmering blade, and kicked Feng right in the face.

With a loud grunt, Feng reeled back. And as IF landed on the ground, she pounced right at him with the intent of dismembering his head. But with a surprising burst of speed, he side stepped her attack, and her Qatar's missed his face by mere centimeters.

He countered with a knee jab towards her rib cage, but due to her aerial prowess, she twisted her body and blocked the knee with her own. A small shockwave enveloped from the contact, and they both used their other leg to kick out.

Feng hit IF's stomach, while IF connected with his face. Needless to say, Feng was smashed into the ground and IF was launched through the air and right through a building behind her. With a loud grunt, she quickly came back to her senses, although her eyesight was a bit blurry.

She walked out to the edge of the hole, and watched as Feng slowly stumbled up from his own impact on the ground.

He spit out some blood, which IF counted as a win in her own book.

"Tch. got some skill. Perhaps I miss-"

And before he finished his sentence, IF used her Flight Leap skill to quickly close in on Feng, and before he could blink, she kicked him right in the floating rib. He went in the air slightly, before she quickly landed on the ground and delivered a powerful ground spinning kick that connected with his chest.

Neither of the two were happy about the fact that they both heard a bone break from that impact. With a loud scream, which was surprising to come from Feng, he was launched in the air and back down to the ground twenty feet away.

With a grunt, IF herself kneeled over and threw up. With both the kick to her stomach and the bone breaking, it basically hit her full on in a bad way. But she did feel a lot better after throwing up. She wiped her mouth with her sleeve, and sighed.

"You couldn't have lost with just that..." she mumbled. In reality, IF only put sixty percent into that initial fight. Has she really gotten that powerful in only a year? It didn't seem believable. She was only a human after all. Perhaps the person she met that trained with her for a few months really helped her.

And she was right about her earlier disbelief. Despite his now broken chest bone- or whatever bone broke there- he still managed to stand straight on the roof of a building. With a single movement, he untwisted his Scythe. His expression was one of pain, but also of extreme anger.

The chains showed, and IF raised an eyebrow. But before she had a chance to say or react, she saw the bladed end of the scythe rapidly flying through the air towards her. Twisting her body slightly and stepping back, she completely dodged the attack.

But again, something that confused her was the fact that Feng wasn't there on the building anymore. A bad fact entirely.

And then it went to hell for her. She blinked and he was In the midst of rushing right in front of her. And with one movement, he had kneed her, then he punched her, and launched her right through building after building, before she smashed right into a steel wall. Her impact bent the wall about 1 foot back before her figure stopped.

She coughed out some more blood, before looking up at the ever speedy Feng. And in a split second he was right in front of her.

"How does it feel!" he shouted, slowly planting his foot on her chest. She flinched. But what made it worse was the fact that he drew his leg back, and kicked her dead center in the chest. The force of the blow pushed her completely through the steel wall and two feet into the ground on the inside of the complex.

The inside was empty basically. Just a steel rounded wall and dirt on the inside.

Feng slowly ascended through the hole in the wall, and landed on the ground a few feet away from IF. "For me to have to go all out against a lowly human is annoying as hell!" he swung his scythe in the air, creating a spinning effect due to the chains that held it together.

"But now it's over. I'll end it right here."

IF slowly opened her eyes, her vision was foggy, but she could still barely stare at him straight in his eyes.

 _Heh... Looks like...it's the end of...the...Wind Walker..._

And right as he was about to swing his scythe at IF to end the fight once and for all, a blur of light smashed into the ground right between the two. Dust flew through the air, but a pure black sword sliced right through, making his appearance known.

And the person who did this, surprised both IF and Feng. Struggling to get up, IF stared dumbfounded at the fact that Tri, who was supposed to be dead, was standing right in front of her.

With a backstep that had so much grace to it that it scared IF, he held his sword out in front of her.

"Relax IF. I'll take it from here."

That got the ball rolling.

"What do you mean?! You couldn't even stand your ground against him for a second! You will lose here and now!" IF, despite her now rugged appearance, stood up straight and shouted, which proved to be a fatal mistake because crouched down and kneeled on the ground.

He sighed, staring in the direction of Feng. "I meant what I said. Now stand back and leave this to Me." he said.

Now what was intriguing was the fact that his eyes, instead of his pure blue eyes, were completely glowing red.

IF blinked, gulping a bit. Feng on the other hand just laughed suddenly and quite loudly. "Ha! So you didn't die back there." he said, and even though he looked worse off than IF, he still held his smug look. "I had a feeling you might have survived but…"

Tri slowly walked towards Feng, a look of anger and hate. "Hmm, like that could have killed me."

Feng actually lost his smug look for a second, before he grinned. "Well, I guess it'd be fun to kill you yet again!" his body vanished from sight. Even IF didn't sense his presence anymore.

But what surprised both IF and Feng, was the fact that he instantly reappeared in that split millisecond, only to be blocked completely by Tri, who was just standing there looking at where Feng originally was.

The eye widening moment passed by for a few seconds, then with speed much faster than Feng, his scythe was knocked into the air and Tri had his foot launched at a speed capable of shattering anyone's entire skeleton right at Feng's stomach.

And when it connected the sound it made along with the small shockwave would make any normal person start throwing up right there. But Tri didn't kick him with the power of knockback. No, he kicked him a certain way that the only thing that happened was him floating in the air for a second, before Tri reached out with his finger-

And flicked him. So much power was put into the attack that it sent him flying through the air. Again.

Tri never once looked at him during that whole encounter. This was indeed the scariest part of that battle.

He yawned, stretching his arms and legs. "At least damage me a tad bit." his tone was much more evil than it was before. IF stood on wobbling legs, looking at him in terror. "T-Tri...w-...what?"

He blinked, and then looked at IF. "It isn't anything to worry about-" His sentence finished, but he was blocked out by Feng's scythe. How the guy managed to come back so fast after that attack was unknown to Tri, but he did something that once again surprised IF and Feng.

He stopped the attack-

-with his index figure.

"Tch. So predictable." he said, grabbing the scythe and with superhuman strength, he lifted him up and smashed him on the ground with no effort at all. And that really made IF step back. Well, as much as her body would allow.

With swordplay skills of a master, Tri spun his sword around and stabbed the Scythe, cutting the Blade end completely off from the pole end.

That was that. The battle was finished in a matter of seconds. And slowly but surely, Tri sheathed his sword and sighed.

"This is the power of the Thirteen? I've seen worse-"

What's the matter with people always jumping in on the sentences? As probably the eighth sentence was cut off, a nocked arrow was flying at Tri at almost light speed. But he was still higher in terms of speed.

The only issue was that when he actually grabbed the arrow, not only was it mere centimeters from his face, it also held enough force to shove him back quite a distance. But he remained unharmed.

"Look at you, Feng. It seems we underestimated them." A voice not too far off caught both IF and Tri's attention. And when they looked at who belonged to the voice, they blinked.

She had silver hair, and wore what looked to be an 'Archers Regalia.' The Onyx colored bow that she held in her hand looked to have little red engravings- the same engravings that Tri's sword has.

"Who are you?" Tri said, walking up next to IF and tossing the arrow to the side.

In a split instant, Feng was no longer on the ground, but in underneath her arm. She stared at the two for a moment. "And to think you're only number nine."

That made both IF and Tri flinch.

"N-Number nine?"

"I figured as much. If the real number four was here we would be dead." Tri said, unsheathing his sword and getting prepared for another fight.

The girl made a clicking noise with her tongue. "Nonono, I didn't say I'd fight you. After all, fighting a co-founder wouldn't really be a fair fight at this point in time now would it?"

So this was either number two or three. Tri couldn't believe it. Did he really waste a ton of his power on an underling? This was just...

IF took a step forward. "You'll pay for this."

Just a floosh of the air was all that Tri or IF felt when the girl was right between them. Of course, due to IF's injuries, she didn't manage to sense the girl at all. But Tri, perfect in health, turned his body as quickly as he could and punched out- only to hit air. Well, that spelled trouble now didn't it?

The tap on his shoulder was enough for him to know that even in Burst Mode, this girl was much too strong for him- for now anyways.

"I said I wasn't going to fight. But if you really want to die now...I can arrange that."

Tri spun around, but it was much too late, she held out her hand and performed the same move that he did not too long ago: A flick.

And this was much more powerful than his own. She flicked out and a massive sonic boom enveloped from the contact. Tri, despite his power at the moment, was sent flying right out of the dome and back into the city.

She turned around to look at IF, who really was scared to shit right now.

"I said I wasn't going to fight. When you see your friend, tell him that he should learn restraint. Otherwise he is just going to die too quickly." she said, and then sighed.

"Anyway- Name is Night."

And in a flash, she was gone. Just like that.

IF didn't realize she was holding her breath that entire time, and when she let it out she fell onto her knees, then her face smacked into the ground. She was exhausted beyond relief. She felt as though she...could...just...

And like that, she passed out.

 **xXxXxXx**

"Crap! IF isn't responding on her comms." Marc said, turning off her own communications device and going to help Compa lift Nepgear into the Falcon. Compa remained calm, or at least tried to remain calm. IF was defeated? No...it couldn't be...and after all that hard training she went through.

"One...two...three!" Marc called, and at the same time, they gently but quickly lifted Nepgear into the passenger hatch on the plane, placing her in the soft bed that they had prepared for her.

But the only things that really made this day just plain horrible, was the amount of blood on their hands after picking her up and setting her down. The amount of injuries was too great, so they needed to fly as fast as the Falcon can go in order to get to an advanced hospital.

You know the injuries are death like when even Compa, one of the top nurses in all of Gamindustri, can't even completely heal them.

Marc turned around and pointed at the plane. "Compa, take Nepgear and go. I'll go find IF."

Compa just blinked, and lowered her head. "But...what if something really bad happened to her?"

Marc walked closer to the edge. "Then I'll kill whoever hurt her." she said. Marc was a knowledgeable girl with a high potential. She is actually IF's direct apprentice. This is why Marc jumped off of the edge with the same ideas and thought processes as IF.

Compa watched her jump, and with a nod of determination she rushed to the plane control hatch and jumped in. Without looking back, aside from a small whimper and tear, Compa blasted off in the plane towards the main Central of Gamindustri.

What hell awaits them during the Carnival?

 **xXxXxXx**

 _"Just a little bit further..."_ A voice said. Was IF imagining it? It sounded a lot like-

 _"We've got no comms. No way of contact to Histoire or Kei. This is an issue."_ wasn't that Tri? Didn't he get killed?

 _"R-Right. But first, we need to find a...capable house before the storm breaks in."_

 _"Yeah, I know. My only complaint is why I'm carrying IF?"_

Wait...what? IF's eyes suddenly opened up and despite her previous injuries, she slipped out of Tri's grip and landed a few feet behind him. She realized a bit too late that it wasn't a dream, and she instantly lowered to her knees.

"Da-crap..." she breathed out, whimpering a bit. But dear lord it hurt so much!

Tri turned around, not fazed in the least. But IF assumed it was a good thing that his eyes weren't glowing anymore...

"Hey, don't move too much. You suffered a lot of damage. Several broken bones and a fractured knee. Be more careful." he said, offering his hand, which IF gently and slowly took. Though she flinched. Her arm hurt a ton...

And with a soft lift, one that barely even made IF's body move, she was in the air and then being held bridal style. One of the most intimate ways of holding someone, but Tri wasn't doing it for a romantic feeling.

It was just the most comfortable and safe spot for her to be at the moment.

But IF was feeling mortified at the moment due to the way he was holding her. A blush started appearing but she held in her short fuse.

"A-Anyway, where's Nepgear?"

An answer almost instantly. "She is already being transported to the Central as we speak." Marc said, now walking side by side with Tri.

"Compa is currently working on most of her injuries as we speak. But we need the tech back at Central in order to do a complete job."

"It's that bad, huh..." IF said quietly. If only she got there sooner! She may have been able to hold him off along with Nepgear to the point that Marc and Compa would show up. Four against one- it would have totally been a win.

But then there was another factor that IF silently cringed upon the thought. Feng wasn't member number four, which meant that any of them below number 8, can basically kick their ass without issue.

And then the showing of Night, the third member, who effortlessly defeated Tri even when he was at full power. And that scared her to death.

If Night could take down Tri at full power single handily, then Night could possibly take down their whole group by herself.

Great. Just great.

But the above all thing that really messed with IF's mentality at the moment was the fact that Tri was here, carrying her to safety, despite having smashed into oblivion from one of Feng's attacks. The evil red eyes that he displayed during his battle against Feng afterwards.

Just who was he exactly?

"Steel guard house, right there." Marc said, pointing in the direction of some broken down steel shed. Though it still had a decent roof and cover from the wind that would be settling in very soon here. Along with the storm.

"Got it." Tri replied, walking a bit faster. They hurried over to the shelter and within moments had claimed it as their 'HQ,' for the time being.

IF found herself being placed up against a wall, still having a tough time moving her arms and legs. At least she could breathe normally...

"Okay, storm should be arriving soon. During that time the comm's will be down for a period of 27 hours." Marc said, eyeballing the large black cloud hanging overhead. It covered the entire city.

Tri nodded, opening his comm's and shutting them down completely. "Keeping the Comm's on will damage them during the storm. Stupid things are so easy to break when shockwaves hit the ground."

The storm was going to be a big one...But they were in a solid steel house, with a closable door. That helped them out a ton. They probably wouldn't even be able to tell when the storm was over unless they checked the door constantly.

That didn't seem like a good idea though.

Well, they were stuck for the time being. Trying to travel or send the Falcon out in this weather was practically a death sentence.

And the storms in Gamindustri are no joke whatsoever. Especially if caused by some other means…

 **xXxXxXx**

"...Establishing communications...establishment failed."

Kei tightened her fists, staring at the screen in front of her. "And why is that?" she asked Histoire, who was busy typing at the computer screen trying to figure out a way to breach into their comms.

"Apparently there is a storm in the area around Planeptune Ruins. And a big one at that. Maybe they shut their comms down in order to keep them in prime condition during the storm?"

That was most likely the reason. It actually made sense. Despite Nepgear's knowledge of machines, the advanced communications system she created still had its major flaws. Like it's deathly weakness to shockwaves or O-zone layers, or just about anything that had anything to do with large bursts of electrical waves.

That didn't help them in this situation. Not one bit.

"Any possible way we can send in a rescue craft?" Red, assistant to Kei and Histoire. She wanted to be of help in more ways than one, so she decided that assisting Kei and Histoire in any way possible would be the best way at the moment.

Kei shook her head. "Even if the Falcon can fly through this weather, we still have no way of obtaining their current whereabouts. So, basically it'd be for naught if we can't find them this way."

Red lowered her head slightly. So all they could do was sit and wait for the storm to pass? How long would it take?

"We're uncertain of that as well. It seems like the storm is in a loop for some odd reason." Histoire said, seemingly like she read Red's mind.

Then all they really could do was wait.

"Stay safe." Red whispered.

 **xXxXxXx**

Maybe a giant steel house wasn't the best choice. As the rain poured, sounds of metallic clacking kept on sounding as each and every rain drop hit the roof of the steel house over and over again.

They weren't going to sleep anytime soon.

"Well, this wasn't a good idea." IF said, looking up at the ceiling as the clacking still wouldn't stop.

Tri nodded. "My bad. I thought that we wouldn't be able to hear it in here. I didn't account the fact that the steel we use is highly absorbent to shock."

Marc took her gloves off, looking out through the small window that the door had. "That rain looks deadly too. You can't even see past like, your hand out there."

That made matters worse. But the most interesting and confusing piece of information was the fact that the storm seemed to only be hitting Old Planeptune. And wasn't it just sunny like, an hour ago?

"I'm sure it's not something supernatural." IF said, having the same thoughts that Tri was having at the moment. "After all, it isn't like there is someone who can control the rain." she said, shrugging and adding a small laugh.

Tri on the other hand, proceeded to walk out of the room to think. He had trouble thinking when people were talking in the same room. Somebody who can control the rain, huh?

"Is this your doing, Rain?" Tri said, thinking about his past. It's quite possible though...

The house was silent for a few minutes, before Marc's voice broke in. "Hey! Tri! Where'd ya go?" she called out, looking around the house. IF however, being in her state of immobilization tilted her head with a worried expression on her face.

"Tri?"

No response.

On the highest floor of the house, the single window at the edge of the room was wide open, but it'd be too late before Marc found it.

 **xXxXxXx**

A distance away, a lone figure stood. She had raven black hair and soft blue eyes. Her appearance wasn't exactly eye catchy, since she wore a thin black dress with little white ribbons all over it.

She was the main cause of the giant storm that befell Old Planeptune. As she was a Thirteen Guardian. Although she didn't necessarily agree with anything that they did, so she wasn't allowed on any major missions.

Thus here she was, doing as she was told and creating a storm. It was mainly to trap a certain group of fighters that the Guardians needed dispatched before the carnival. So she'd relay to the leader of the Guardians the location of the three, and then they'd destroy them.

Though Rain wasn't entirely up to the task- she was forced into it. Her own misfortune for joining up with a group of evil people. And she wasn't even allowed to quit either. Oh, how much she missed the three of them fighting evil like the good old days...Well, they did less fighting evil and more fighting themselves.

Project Nova. Lead by none other than K-

"Figured it was you." a voice sounded behind her, which made her jump out of her skin and turn quickly, readying her own elemental power to fight back. Her ability was to be able to control rain, thus why she was named 'Rain' for Project Nova. Her actual name? She forgot it a long time ago.

"T-T-Tri?!" She called, lowered her arms slowly as the man in question slowly walked up to face Rain about four feet away.

"Hey, Rain. Long-time no see. Six months ago, right?" Tri started off, breathing in and out at this sudden encounter.

"W-What are you doing here? I thought you became a delivery man in Central Gamindustri?"

"A friend needed some help, so here I am." he answered right away, putting a hand on his hip. "Mind if I ask what are YOU doing here? I thought you couldn't stand the Guardian's morals."

Silence came after. All that could really be heard was the rain falling all around them. Though, to keep herself dry, she made a small air pocket so that she could observe without issue.

She looked away, a frown appearing on her face. "I heard what you did to Feng. Was the similarities just that great that you had to beat the crap out of him?"

"You know? When he knocked me off of the tower, that's when I remembered how much I hated Nova." Tri said, sighing and looking towards the steel house not that far from where they were.

She blinked, waiting for him to continue.

"Project Nova," he began, rubbing his head. "I haven't heard or thought of that name in 9 months. Too bad the project only lasted three."

"Only because Nova perished-"

"Became someone else's puppet. You know this more so than anyone Rain. You were there when 'She' came in and brainwashed the guy." Tri cut in, a serious look on his face. "Was it not enough to watch him die? Now here you are, working for the very same person who did that to him!"

"What was I supposed to do?!" She countered, raising her voice slightly. "I couldn't just stand there and do nothing?!"

"You could have escaped with me!" he shouted back, causing Rain to back down a bit before Tri continued. "You know how sad I was when you took 'her' hand? She flipping cut him in half for god's sake!"

She remained silent, not looking at the ground with a sad look on her face.

"Now here we are, 9 months later. Was it not enough to try to convince me to join the Guardians one time? That you'd have to try again?" he asked, looking down and lowering his voice.

"I cared about you. A lot. And you just had to turn your back on me?" he said, barely a whisper. Though she heard it all. She could hear greatly due to the amount of rain she was creating.

The tension was still there, Tri could feel it. But he got that off of his chest.

"Join our side-"

"I can't..."

He sighed, looking away slightly. "It's because of him right? He looks so much like Nova..."

Silence again.

"Nova was a kind man that was willing to help with anything..." Rain said, raising her head to look at Tri. "If you felt even a little bit of friendship, why won't you join us?" Tri shook his head, turning around and sighing. "Because I made a promise."

 **xXxXxXx**

 _It's been about two days since Project Nova was supposed to be shut down. It was a project that Kei herself started in order to develop people who had supernatural abilities. There were only three in total who passed the tests and became 'Project Nova'. Although there were many who were close, but they only needed three._

 _Tri of Planeptune._

 _Rain of Lowee_

 _And Nova of Lastation._

 _Each was given names in order to distinguish which one was able to do what. Rain being able to control water. Nova being able to control...well, nova. And Tri, who was a special case in being able to control 3 different supernatural elements. He was able to develop a technique that allowed him to control three at the same time in order to boost his power tremendously. Otherwise known as 'Burst Mode'._

 _However- something happened and that caused the project to be forced shut down. The Thirteen Guardians first appearance. Two of their members broke into Kei's secret training and testing facility and brainwashed two of Project Nova's members. They fled without so much of a word getting out._

 _Tri remained behind, battered and completely helpless._

 _And two days after that, here was Tri, standing in the same spot he stood when Rain and Nova were taken from him._

 _"You know, acting like this won't bring them back." Kei said, walking up from behind him. She had a hunch he was back in this room, playing over his memories in order to see what he could have done to fix what had happened._

 _"Do me a favor Tri. Make a promise to me; bring them back. Both of them."_

 _"I promise."_

 **xXxXxXx**

"I made a promise to bring you both back. And while Feng might look like Nova, and even use the same weapon as him, I don't think they are the same." Tri said, turning around and sighing. "I'm sorry..."

Rain frowned; a hint sadness appeared on her face. "Why can't we just be together again?"

"We can," Tri said, walking back out into the rain. "It's just whether or not we are going to be together on the good side or the bad side." after that, he seemed to vanish in the rain, though Rain knew exactly where he was every second in that time.

"Tri, you're too good for anyone in this world..." she mumbled, a tear falling from her eye."Dumbass, stupid, idiot!" she cried out.

The man in question walked through the rain with no intention of looking back. It seemed that she just, wasn't ready to come back to the good side. Did she share in the hatred for Nepgear? He should have asked...

"That doesn't matter now. I got to get back- Marc and IF are probably worried." he said, before raising his hand slightly in the air-

"Oh, so that's how you did it." Rain said, looking in the air. "You know, it was always unfair that you could control three elements at the same time."

 **xXx** **XxXx**

"How'd you go out there-?"

"And not end up the least bit wet?" Marc started, and IF finished. Tri just chuckled, having just come through the window that Marc was watching over along with IF who seemed to be in a bit more of a moving state. Seriously, she was much stronger then people gave her credit for.

"Just a little bit of skill and talent on my end. I'll explain downstairs where it's actually somewhat bright." the two just exchanged looks, before Marc helped IF off the ground and followed him downstairs.

"You might want to sit down," he started off, pulling three chairs from a table to the room they were in, and setting them in a circle. "Because you might fall down depending on how you take this story."

"What do you mean?" IF asked, some confusion plastered on her face. Marc had an idea about what was talking about though- seeing how she knew Tri longer than the other people in the Central.

"Is this about your past?" Marc asked, and Tri nodded. "I already told you a small bit about it, seeing how we were friends before I was shipped off to the project." she just nodded, and IF leaned in as much as she could.

"Well, it was about...well, a year ago. It was just around the time where Nepgear became the new CPU of Gamindustri." he started off, sighing a little bit. "I was just a normal boy at the time, nothing exactly special about me, except for my ability in controlling elements." IF's eyes went wide for a moment, before she tilted her head. "Supernatural? That's not exactly possible-"

"But it is." Marc cut her off, looking in her direction. "I used to go to his house every day and hang out with him. And one day he used his elements. Of course, I was scared completely. But after a few days I apologized for my attitude towards him after that, and shortly after-"

"Here comes a grand friend of yours. You know her- Kei."

"Wait...what?" IF was even more so confused by the mention of Kei then of supernatural powers.

"You see, Kei was trying to put together a little program in order to find three new CPU's for Gamindustri so that the load would be taken off of Nepgear completely. This was called 'Project Nova'. Nova being a new type of element that was in the midst of being found. There were 8 candidates in total. However, only three were able to go on and become the new CPU's."

He looked up. "Well, three people were chosen, and I was sure to hell I wasn't going to be one of them. I hardly even knew what my ability was. At least until Kei said who was to be leaving and who was staying."

"Next thing I know, here I am; standing in a room with two others. A girl and a boy. Introductions never really happened, until we found out which elements we controlled. Nova being able to control the power of supernovas. And Rain, being able to control rain. I was named Tri, because I was able to control three different elements at once."

IF listened intently on the story, not wishing to interrupt at all. "By combining these three elements, I was able to drastically increase my battle prowess, enabling me the skills and ability to fight on par with the CPU's themselves."

"Though, Nova was special. While his ability allowed him to create supernovas, he was also able to create smaller versions and place them wherever he wanted. That was why I could never beat him, even in my Burst Mode. He could place them in the air, inside the earth, and even in human bodies. He was the perfect CPU; able to defend in every way possible."

"I'd like to believe that Rain and I shared a connection stronger than we did with Nova. Since we always got the least amount of training and less attention than he did. I guess it sort of put a little wedge between us two and him."

"Though whenever we were together training, she'd always talk about how mature and great he was. I'll admit- I was a little bit jealous over that. I'd try to show off what I could do in front of her, but here comes Nova with just much more talent and charms..."

"After that, I distanced myself from Rain and him, doing training every single morning and night and never in mid-day when they trained." He finally looked back down and locked eyes with IF. "After about one initial month, we were pinned against each other to see who was stronger as of that moment. Well, the objective was simple to me- defeat Nova. I didn't want to fight Rain, because despite just having water as her ability, she could do some devastating stuff with it."

"And besides, I had a grudge against Nova so he was my main target. And what do you know- the first one I see was him. I lost, despite all my training the rest of that month. I let my anger get ahead of me and ended up making a stupid decision."

"What did you do?" IF asked.

"I blindly rushed him. I didn't even activate Burst Mode. I was so pissed off at his perfection that I forgot the critical thing I needed in order to win. And of course- he beat Rain easily as well."

IF just fell silent. Marc didn't say a word, having already known most of this already.

"*Ahem* Anyway, after that I thought about taking patience training alone as well. So my nights were dedicated to meditating and my mornings were training my elements. Another month passed."

He grew silent for a moment, before sighing. "Well, I thought I was going to lose. After all, I wasn't the only one training constantly. However, I had some advantages that he didn't have that time- patience and willpower. With enough practice, you can defeat those who were born with talent. I didn't believe that, until we ended up fighting again and I won."

He raised his hand when IF looked like she was about to ask another question. "One moment, not done."

"But I didn't feel happy that I finally beat the person who drove me away from the two of them. I felt even further away...So after I found Rain, instead of fighting her I actually confessed to her."

IF gasped, leaning almost completely out of her chair. "W-w-w-wa- how'd she react to that?"

He chuckled. "She...didn't take it that well. Not only did she not share the same feelings towards me as I did towards her, but her and Nova were actually already in the dating stages at that time."

IF lowered her head, and leaned back in her seat. "That..."

"So I fought her after that, and won. Kei congratulated me personally but I just walked away...Then I started training from midnight till about 7 in the morning, when the two started waking up. Then I went to sleep during the day. Though I had Kei's permission of course. She said that she wasn't expecting anything romantic to happen between us, so it caught her by surprise."

"She said I could train whenever I wanted, as long as I poured my all into it. So every night at eleven I'd leave the facility and head in a random direction for an hour, then train until six, then leave and get back at around seven. Never once were words exchanged between me and them ever again."

"I felt so stupid during the third month's trial training. How could I just fight them? I learned from a random DI that Rain and Nova shared a kiss just the day before." he slumped over, rubbing his head.

"I basically became nocturnal by this point in time, and the trial training was put off until eight at night. It was our first fight in the dark, but since I've been practicing in the dark for so long, I was perfectly fine during the trial. After beating both Rain and Nova that time, thanks to the darkness and my training, I knew that the distance was unrepairable. I cried for 2 hours that night all alone in my training location."

It was a little bit of a harsh story, that Tri was telling as the rain continued to poor down all over Planeptune Ruins.

"That morning, after I came back...We were attacked by two mysterious and cloaked figures. We couldn't even fight back. We were overpowered in an instant."

"Was it, the leaders of the Thirteen Guardians?" IF asked, and Tri nodded. "Yes, it was. They...brainwashed Nova, and he attacked me and Rain. I activated Burst Mode and completely wiped the floor with the guy, easily beating him. However, the one who was the leader didn't take kindly to that, and killed him on the spot..."

"Rain...the leader gave us two options. Perish, or join them. We three were originally supposed to join the guardians. Or at least two of us. Rain she...took the hand of that cursed woman and flipping apologized to me. I didn't want to have it. I didn't. I didn't accept and they ordered Rain to dispatch me right on the spot."

"However, I used a combination of two of my elements to hide my presence, hence why I was able to move around outside in this weather without getting wet by the rain." He sighed. "Well, they fled after that, not wanting to be spotted by Kei or whoever was working there. Two days after...I made a promise with Kei, that I'd bring them back."

"Well, searching for three months I never found them, so I became a message boy. With my speed I was able to relay messages to everywhere. And Kei accepted my proposal. So there I was, thinking that my life might return back to normal..."

"That was until 6 months ago, when they took Leanbox. Wasn't it strange? The weather was supposed to be sunny that day, but it was raining everywhere all over Leanbox. Rain, being the reason."

"I actually managed to locate Rain myself, and tried to get her to join our side. But she refused and shot back at me telling me I should join theirs. They had an open spot. I declined, but was soon getting attacked. So I fled back to Central and the months went by..."

"Now here we are, sitting in the ruins of Planeptune." He finally finished, leaning back in his chair and breathing out. "Whew, haven't told that story in a long time."

"I'm sorry I had to let you...relive those memories again..." IF said, looking down a bit. "No worries, seeing the rain tonight already made me remember anyway. Besides, it was bound to happen at some point."

And the rest of the night was silent.

 **xXx**

 **How about this chapter full of filler? A TON of filler in this chapter, and I apologize. But it was important things to know.**

 **Tri was the experiment of Project Nova, a project that Kei herself created in order to make three CPU's. Or rather three people who were as capable as the CPU's were. But something went wrong and caused the project to shut down.**

 **Now the reason that IF was so 'oh crap, that's impossible.' Is because normally, a human wouldn't be able to control any form of magic. IF could do it because she's been around the CPU's for her whole life. But there are people out there born with the powers.**

 **And don't think that Tri is an overpowered bastard, he really isn't. Anyone ranked 5 and down from the thirteen guardians could defeat him almost instantly. Stay tuned for the next chapter! '_' ***

 **[Next Chapter:**

 **Recovery and Training]**


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